Olympian David Hearn indicted in Reflecting Pool destruction of property case

U.S. Olympian canoeist David Hearn was indicted by a grand jury in Washington, D.C., for destruction of property in connection with allegedly ripping up sealant in the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro said Thursday. Pirro said Hearn on June 19 willfully damaged a two-square-foot piece of sealant at the pool, whose renovation has been a top priority for President Donald Trump this year. Hearn, 67, faces a possible maximum sentence of 10 years in prison if convicted of the felony charge, which was filed in the District of Columbia. He was arrested on June 19 on a misdemeanor charge. The three-time Olympian told The Washington Post after his arrest that he had been cycling when he stopped at the Reflecting Pool to look at it. While there, he said, he reached into the water to feel what a partially detached piece of blue liner felt like, after which he was arrested. "This was a deliberate act to damage the Reflecting Pool at the National Mall that members of the National Park Service actually have worked hard to restore, and have witnessed," Pirro said. "National Park employees observed Hearn actually forcefully and violently pulling up and removing the bottom liner with both hands," Pirro said. "According to witnesses, Hearn damaged approximately two square feet of sealant from the bottom of the pool," the prosecutor said. When a Park Service employee told Hearn to stop, he should at her and told her she cared too much about the Reflecting Pool, according to Pirro. Pirro said the Reflecting Pool is one of the national landmarks and monuments "that belong to all of us. "And they must be protected for generations to come," she said. This is breaking news. Please refresh for updates.